Incendiary shell



Sept. 28, 1965 w. PERNISS INCENDIARY SHELL Filed Dec. 23, 1963 INVENTOR WILHELM PERNISS United States Patent T 3,208,385 INCENDIARY SHELL Wilhelm Periiis's, Nu'rnberg, Germany, assignor to Diehl, Nurnbe'rg, Germany Filed Dec. 23, 1963, Ser. No. 332,814 Claims priority, application Germany, Dec. 24, 1962,

D 40,589 6 Claims. (Cl. 10266) The present invention relates to an incendiary shell, especially an armor-piercing shell, in which the shell body is provided with a chamber filled with an inflammable, incendiary charge which when normally exposed to air will not inflame.

Incendiary shells of the above mentioned type have heretofore required a fuse or detonator which upon the impact of the shell on a hard object ignited the incendiary charge. Such an arrangement,- especially with shells of smaller caliber, aside from the costs for a fuse or detonator has the drawback that the fuse or detonator considerably reduces the available space for the incendiary charge so that the shell loses correspondingly in its effectiveness. 7

Incendiary shells with an incendiary charge are known which latter automatically ignites upon the admission of air. Such shells, however, are dangerous to fill, to store, and to transport.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an incendiary shell, especially armor-piercing shell, which will overcome the above mentioned drawbacks.

It is another object of this invention to provide an incendiary shell, especially armor-piercing shell, which is filled with a de-sensitized incendiary charge, which latter will normally not inflame when brought into contact with air but will automatically inflame upon impact of the shell.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an axial section through an incendiary shell according to the present invention, comprising a shell body with an axial bore in the nose of the shell body and a hood.

FIG. 2 is a section of the front portion of a modified incendiary shell body according to the invention having a blind bore in the shell body nose.

FIG. 3 is a section through the front portion of still another modification of an incendiary shell body according to the present invention, which comprises a blind bore extending from the inner chamber containing the incendiary charge into the nose of the shell body.

FIG. 4 represents an axial section through an incendiary shell according to the invention which differs from the other preceding modifications in that it has a groove in the nose of the shell body.

In conformity with the present invention, the shell body is provided with passage means leading into the chamber containing the incendiary charge or is provided with means whch, upon impact of the shell, will cause the latter to break and thereby will permit the access of air to the incendiary charge so that in view of the friction, percussion or shock effect occurring during the impact, the outside air will inflame the incendiary charge without the necessity of an additional fuse or detonator. The said passage means may be in the form of an axial bore in the nose of the shell body. For purposes of bringing about a predetermined break of the shell upon impact, the said bore may be designed in the form of a blind bore. However, instead, it is also possible to provide the hardened 3,293,385 Patented Sept. 28, 1965 tip of the shell nose with a constriction, i.e. with a groove. In order to improve the outer ballistics of the shell, the latter may be provided with a hood covering said passage means or groove. Furthermore, the said hood may likewise be filled with an incendiary charge. It is only when the shell bursts or breaks, i.e. when the shell impacts and a friction, percussion or shock effect is exerted upon the inflammable charge, that the access of air causes the incendiary charge to inflame.

Referring now to the drawing in detail and FIG. 1 thereof in particular, the shell shown therein comprises a shell body 2 having a chamber 1 filled with an incendiary charge 4 of any standard composition. As a rule, such incendiary charge contains primarily red phosphorus with additions of burnable metallic powders such as magnesium and aluminum. The shell body may consist of ball bearing steel. The rear of the chamber 1 is closed by the shell bottom or shell base 3. This shell bottom may be cemented to the shell body 2 or may be held to the shell body by flanging or folding over the end of the shell body. Whereas, at least the tip of the shell body 2 is hardened, the rear end of the shell body 2 is preferably soft. As will be evident from the drawing, the shell nose is provided with an axial bore 5 and covered by a hood 6. p

The space confined by said hood 6 with the shell body 2 may at least partially, i.e. up to a partition 511, be filled with an incendiary charge 7.

According to FIG. 2, the hardened nose of the shell body 8 is provided with a blind bore 9 the bottom of which is slightly spaced from the incendiary charge 4. However, the spacing between the bottom of blind bore 9 and the incendiary charge filled chamber 1, is so small that when the shell impacts upon a hard object, the material between said chamber 1 and the bottom of bore 9 will be sure to break thereby establishing communication between the incendiary charge 4 and the atmosphere through said bore 9.

FIG. 3 shows an arrangement somewhat similar to that of FIG. 2, but instead of the blind bore, in conformity with FIG. 2 extending from the outside to a point near chamber 1, according to FIG. 3 the blind bore extends from chamber 1 in axial direction to the tip 12 of the shell body 11 but ends at a slight distance from said tip 12. The eifect of the blind bore 10 will be the same as that of blind bore 9 inasmuch as upon impact of the shell upon a hard object, the bore 10 will break through toward the outside whereby communication is established of charge 4 through bore 10 with the atmosphere.

In conformity with the embodiment of FIG. 4, a breaking of the shell body upon impact upon a hard object will be assured by a groove 13 in the nose 14 of the shell body.

The inflammation of the incendiary charge 4 is according to the embodiment of FIG. 1 effected by the incendiary charge 7 through bore 5. This incendiary charge 7 in hood 6 will in its turn inflame as a result of friction or percussion or shock occurring by impact of the shell on a hard object. It will be appreciated that in this instance the incendiary charge 7 will burn to a major extent on the outside of the armor while shell body 2 will pierce the armor and the incendiary charge 4 will burn inside the armor.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular structures shown in the drawing but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An incendiary shell, especially armor piercing shell, which includes: a shell body having a chamber and a nose portion, an incendiary charge provided in said chamber, said charge being inflammable by communication with atmospheric air when subjected to friction and shock, said nose portion within the range of said chamber being provided with means formed therein to facilitate the breaking of said nose portion upon piercing of armor plate or the like by said shell, and a forwardly tapering hood connected to the outside of said shell body.

2. An incendiary shell according to claim 1, in which the forward portion of said hood together with said nose portion confine a chamber in which an incendiary charge is provided in said last-mentioned chamber.

3. An incendiary shell, especially armor piercing shell, which includes: a shell body having a main chamber and a nose portion, an incendiary charge provided in said chamber, said charge being inflammable by communication with atmospheric air when subjected to friction and shock, said nose portion within the range of said chamber being provided with means formed therein to facilitate the breaking of said nose portion upon impact of said shell on a hard object, a forwardly tapering hood connected to the outside of said shell body, said hood together with said nose portion confining an additional chamber, an additional incendiary charge provided in said additional chamber, said means forming passage means establishing communication between said main chamber and said additional chamber.

4. An incendiary shell according to claim 1, in which said hood together with the nose portion of said shell body confines an additional chamber, and which comprises passage means leading from said additional chamber in the direction toward said first-mentioned chamber but ending short thereof by a short distance so as to leave the material of the shell body between said firstmentioned chamber and said additional chamber so thin as to insure its breakage upon impact of said shell on a hard object.

5. An incendiary shell according to claim 1, in which said hood together with said nose portion confines an additional chamber, and in which passage means is provided leading from said first mentioned chamber in the direction toward said additional chamber but ending short thereof, the distance between that end of said passage means which is adjacent said additional chamber and said additional chamber being so short that the material therebetween will break upon impact of said shell upon a hard object.

6. An incendiary shell, especially armor piercing shell, which includes: a shell body having a chamber and a nose portion, an incendiary charge provided in said chamber, said charge being inflammable by communication with atmospheric air when subjected to friction and shock, said nose portion within the range of said chamber being provided with annular recess means formed therein to facilitate the breaking of said nose portion upon piercing of armor plate or the like by said shell, and a forwardly tapering hood connected to the outside of said shell body.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,294,329 2/19 Bowers 102-66 2,446,082 7/48 Dixon 10266 2,564,870 8/51 Weiss 10252 2,780,995 2/57 Migliaccio 10'266 3,096,715 7/63 Dufour 10266 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner.

FRED C. MATTERN, JR., Examiner. 

1. AN INCENDIARY SHELL, ESPECIALLY ARMOR PIERCING SHELL, WHICH INCLUDES: A SHELL BODY HAVING A CHAMBER AND A NOSE PORTION, AND INCENDIARY CHARGE PROVIDED IN SAID CHAMBER, SIAD CHARGE BEING INFLAMMABLE BY COMMUNICATION WITH ATMOSPHERIC AIR WHEN SUBJECTED TO FRICTION AND SHOCK, SAID NOSE PORTION WITH THE RANGE OF SAID CHAMBER BEING PROVIDED WITH MEANS FORMED THEREIN TO FACILITATE THE BREAKING OF SAID NOSE PORTION UPON PIERCING OF ARMOR PLATE OR THE LIKE BY SAID SHELL, AND A FORWARDLY TAPERING HOOD CONNECTED TO THE OUTSIDE OF SAID SHELL BODY. 